GlaxoSmithKline

ASCO Urges Aggressive Efforts to Increase HPV Vaccination

Source: www.medscape.comAuthor: Zosia Chustecka Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines have now been available for 10 years, but despite many medical professional bodies strongly recommending the vaccine, uptake in the United States remains low. Data from a national survey show that about 36% of girls and 14% of boys have received the full schedule of HPV vaccines needed to provide protection (Vaccine. 2013;31:1673-1679). Now the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has become involved, and in a position statement issued today the organization calls for aggressive efforts to increase uptake of the HPV vaccines to "protect young people from life-threatening cancers." "With safe and effective vaccines readily available, no young person today should have to face the devastating diagnosis of a preventable cancer like cervical cancer. But unless we rapidly increase vaccination rates for boys and girls, many of them will," ASCO President Julie M. Vose, MD, said in a statement. "As oncologists, we see the terrible effects of these cancers first hand, and we have to contribute to improving today's alarmingly low vaccination rates," she added. The new policy statement is published online April 11 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The statement notes that HPV vaccination has been previously recommended by many US medical societies, including the American Cancer Society, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology Committee, the American Dental Association, the American Head and Neck Society, the American Nurses Association, the American Pharmacists Association, the Association of Immunization Managers, the Society for Adolescent Medicine, and the Society of Gynecologic Oncology. [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-04-18T13:12:04-07:00April, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

AAP Now Recommends HPV Vaccine for Boys and Girls

Source: HemOnc Today The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases issued an updated policy statement on human papillomavirus vaccination that recommends both boys and girls be immunized. The policy statement notes vaccination reduces the incidence of sexually transmitted infections and reduces cancer risk. “Persistent infection with high-risk HPV types is responsible for most cervical and anal cancers in females,” the statement reads. “In males, high-risk HPV types are responsible for a large proportion of cancers of the mouth and pharynx, which are increasing in recent years, and of anal and penile cancers.” There currently is one approved HPV vaccine (HPV4; Gardasil, Merck) for boys and two vaccines — HPV4 and HPV2 (Cervarix, GlaxoSmithKline) — approved for girls. The committee recommended that: Girls aged 11 to 12 years should receive three doses of HPV2 or HPV4 — administered intramuscularly at 0, 1 to 2, and 6 months — even if they already are sexually active. Boys aged 11 to 12 years should receive three doses of HPV4 using the same schedule. Females aged 13 to 26 years and males aged 13 to 21 years who were not previously immunized or who are missing a vaccination should complete the full series. Men aged 22 to 26 years who were not immunized previously or who are missing a vaccination may receive the HPV4 series, but “cost-efficacy models do not justify a stronger recommendation in this age group.” The policy statement recommended that women who receive the vaccine continue to undergo cervical [...]

Charlotte Parker2012-03-21T10:35:17-07:00March, 2012|Oral Cancer News|

Head and neck cancer carries substantial comorbidity burden

Source: MedWire News People with head and neck cancer experience a high burden of both acute and chronic comorbidity, shows an analysis of a large Dutch population-based cohort. The researchers therefore advise clinicians to account for patients' comorbidity burden when assessing the risk-benefit profile for different treatment options. Sarah Landis (GlaxoSmithKline, London, UK) and co-workers analyzed information on 1499 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) living in the Netherlands. For each patient they calculated prevalence and incidence rates of eight comorbid conditions: cardiovascular disease, asthma/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), liver disease, diabetes, anemia, pneumonia, depression, and other malignant disease. Rates of the same eight conditions were also calculated in a control population of 5996 cancer-free individuals matched for age and gender. Writing in the journal Head and Neck, Landis et al report that the mean age of the SCCHN cohort was 62 years and two-thirds were male. The site of cancer was the oral cavity in 610 patients, the pharynx in 317, and the larynx in 572. The most prevalent comorbidities in patients with SCCHN were cardiovascular disease (41%) and asthma/COPD (12%); the other comorbidities were prevalent in less than 10% of patients. Notably, in the period of 12 months prior to the index date, patients with SCCHN were between two and four times as likely as cancer-free controls to have any of the comorbidities investigated, the authors remark. In terms of incidence, rates of all comorbidities (with the exception of other malignant diseases) were [...]

Charlotte Parker2012-02-06T10:16:32-07:00February, 2012|Oral Cancer News|

Success of HPV vaccination is now a matter of coverage

Source: The Lancet Oncology, Volume 13, Issue 1, Pages 10-12, January 2012 In a pair of articles in The Lancet Oncology, Lehtinen and colleagues and Wheeler and colleagues present 4-year end of study data from a trial of a prophylactic human papillomavirus (HPV)-16/-18 vaccine (Cervarix, GlaxoSmithKline) in young women aged 15-25 years. From a public-health perspective, these studies have several important contributions. The results assure us that among HPV-naive women in the 15—25 year age range, Cervarix has extremely high efficacy against HPV-16/-18-associated persistent infection, CIN2, and CIN3 or worse, the best ethical surrogate endpoint for prospective studies of invasive cervical cancer risk. Combined with other trials of Cervarix and Merck's quadrivalent Gardasil vaccine against HPV-16/-18/-6/-11,3 the evidence is strong for near 100% prophylactic vaccine efficacy in HPV-naive women at any age. Nonetheless, even with vaccine efficacy near 100% in HPV-naive women, the efficacy in the total vaccinated cohort decreased steeply with increasing age, showing an absence of therapeutic effect against already-acquired infections and associated lesions. We know from natural history studies that new HPV transmission (incidence, not prevalence) decreases with age in most cultures.4 Together, natural history data and results of trials for both vaccines suggest that vaccination before sexual debut, or around the time of menarche, will achieve the greatest reduction in cervical cancer rates. The 4-year trial data shows no decline in vaccine efficacy in HPV-naive women with time since vaccination.1 We know from other trials of the two vaccines that the duration of protection is several [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2012-01-05T16:54:57-07:00January, 2012|Oral Cancer News|

Data Published in the Lancet Oncology Support High Efficacy Previously Demonstrated By Cervarix

Source: Therapeutics Daily Author: Staff LONDON, Nov. 9, 2011-An analysis published today in The Lancet Oncology reinforces previous findings showing that GlaxoSmithKline’s Cervarix®, provided protection against advanced precancerous lesions (CIN3+), above that expected from a vaccine that protects against human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18. CIN3+ is the immediate step before invasive cervical cancer and data showing protection against this type of lesion are considered the most stringent evidence of potential cervical cancer prevention.1 Results from the largest efficacy trial of a cervical cancer vaccine to date (PATRICIA), show that Cervarix provided 93%† efficacy against CIN3+ irrespective of the HPV type associated with the CIN3+ lesion.1This pre-defined, exploratory analysis was conducted in women with no evidence of past or current HPV infection.‡ These women are thought to be representative of young girls prior to the onset of sexual activity – the primary target population for organised vaccination programmes. These findings have been incorporated into the European label for Cervarix, updated by the European Commission in September 2011. Additional data from the same end-of-study analysis have been published in a separate article in TheLancet Oncology. These data demonstrate that Cervarix provided 82%* efficacy against CIN3+, associated with a composite of 12 cancer-causing HPV types not included in the vaccine, in the same population as the analysis discussed above.2 This analysis excluded cases co-infected with HPV 16 and/or 18 and is therefore a conservative estimate of cross-protective efficacy. Non-vaccine HPV types, including the 12 studied in this analysis, together account for approximately 30% of cervical cancers globally.3 The authors [...]

Charlotte Parker2011-11-16T12:04:02-07:00November, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

HPV Vaccination Could Reduce the Number of Screening Procedures

The National Journal By Sophie Quinton Widespread vaccination against cervical cancer could reduce the need for burdensome screenings, U.S. and Finnish researchers said on Tuesday. A study published in the journal Lancet Oncology show that GlaxoSmithKline’s Cervarix vaccine, which protects against two strains of human papillomavirus, or HPV, was more than 93 percent effective in preventing precancerous lesions in women who had never been infected and completely protected young women from the strains of virus targeted by the vaccine. The vaccine also reduced cancer risk for women who had already been infected by HPV, but was far less effective. A second study found that Cervarix can protect against rarer strains of HPV that also cause cancer. Neither study looked at Gardisil, the other licensed HPV vaccine, which protects against four strains of HPV—including the two targeted by Cervarix. The efficacy of vaccination adds fuel to two debates: how often women need to undergo cervical cancer screenings, and how important it is to reach girls—and boys—with HPV vaccinations before they become sexually active. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, American Cancer Society, and other clinical groups have agreed that the pap smear—the screening for cervical cancer—does not need to be done every year for most women, and suggest that screenings begin at age 21. For vaccinated women, the need for screening might be further reduced. “Provided that organised vaccination programs achieve high coverage in early adolescents before sexual debut, HPV vaccination has the potential to substantially reduce the incidence of cervical [...]

Charlotte Parker2011-11-08T20:47:32-07:00November, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Immunity Drugs Used to Fight Cancer

Source: The Wall Street Journal Scientists are scrambling to develop medications that fight cancer by spurring the body's immune system, a form of treatment that some cancer specialists believe may hold the key to keeping a patient permanently disease-free. The new efforts come in the wake of recent Food and Drug Administration approvals of Dendreon Corp.'s Provenge, an immunotherapy drug used to treat prostate cancer, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Yervoy, for melanoma. Other immunotherapy drugs are being developed for a number of other cancers, including lung, brain and kidney cancers. Unlike most traditional therapies that attack a cancer directly, immunotherapy uses the body's own internal defenses to ward off the disease, with the ultimate hope of building up a long-term resistance to the cancer. "If we are ever going to use the word 'cure', the immune system is going to have to come into play," says Stephen Hodi, director of the melanoma center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. One of the ways that cancer survives and ultimately spreads through the body is by exploiting a function in all cells that prevents the immune system from killing them. Researchers have found that cancer cells have multiple methods of avoiding detection and suppressing the immune system's response. "Why would cancer devote so much energy to avoid the immune system if the immune system didn't have the potential to reject the cancer?" says Robert Vonderheide from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania. There are big hurdles to advancing the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-14T10:26:14-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

GlaxoSmithKline Drops the Price of Cervarix

Source: PharmaLive MISSISSAUGA, ON, Oct. 25 /CNW/ - Today, GlaxoSmithKline Inc. (Canada), announced its plan to reduce the cost of CERVARIX™ by 30%. The cost reduction is in response to recent research that demonstrates the relatively high price of cervical cancer vaccines, coupled with a low understanding of their protective benefits topped the list of reasons why the majority of young Canadian women have yet to be immunized. Last week, research supported by The Society of Gynecologic Oncology of Canada (GOC), The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC), the Federation of Medical Women of Canada (FMWC), and the Society of Canadian Colposcopists (SCC) revealed that 9 out of 10 Canadian women aged 18 to 25 have not been vaccinated against cervical cancer. Half of young women polled (who do not have a private drug plan) cited cost as a barrier to obtaining the vaccine and 61% of mothers of young women agreed that cost was a deterring factor. In fact, 50% of non-vaccinated women aged 18 to 25 without vaccine coverage through their drug plan and 61% of mothers with daughters in this age group cited cost as a deciding factor. This is particularly relevant as 60% of Canadians do not have vaccine coverage through private insurance.1 As a patient-focused company, GlaxoSmithKline Inc. was concerned to learn that the cost of cervical cancer vaccines is deterring women from protecting themselves from a largely preventable disease that kills one Canadian woman every day.2 Effective today, October 25, 2010, the [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-10-26T13:57:51-07:00October, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

GSK European Commission amends licence for Cervarix

By: GlaxoSmithKline Source: PharmPro GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) confirmed today that the European Commission has granted Marketing Authorisation to amend the licence for its cervical cancer vaccine, Cervarix®. The approval from the European Commission is important as it recognises the extent of cervical cancer protection demonstrated by Cervarix®, which was not highlighted by the previous indication. The licence amendment is supported by data from the largest efficacy trial of a cervical cancer vaccine conducted to date, the PATRICIA study, and acknowledges that Cervarix® has shown efficacy beyond HPV 16 and 18, the two virus types contained in the vaccine. The summary of product characteristics (SPC) for Cervarix® will be updated to include the prevention of precancerous lesions and cervical cancer causally related to certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) and will reflect data showing efficacy against the two vaccine types contained in the vaccine (HPV 16 and 18) and the three next most common cancer-causing virus types (HPV 31, 33 and 45).* Together these five HPV types (16, 18, 31, 33 and 45) account for 80 percent of all cervical cancers. * Vaccine efficacy is different for each of the HPV types 16, 18, 31, 33 and 45, and varies in different cohorts and endpoints. GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK Biologicals), GlaxoSmithKline’s vaccines business, is one of the world’s leading vaccine companies and a leader in innovation. The company is active in vaccine research, development and production with over 30 vaccines approved for marketing and 20 more in development - both in the prophylactic and therapeutic fields [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-09-17T09:07:55-07:00September, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Dispatch: get vaccinated!

Source: American Council on Science and Health Author: Staff According to U.S. researchers, there are an estimated 11,300 throat cancer cases attributable to human papilloma virus (HPV) annually, although the government does not formally track the incidence rate since the connection between HPV and throat cancer was only made in the past few years. The rate is expected to rise since people have more sexual partners now than in decades past. “Unfortunately, many people are unaware of the connection between HPV and throat cancer since it is so underreported. I’m especially concerned for kids who engage in oral sexual activities under the mistaken belief that this is ‘safe sex,’ and it’s not,” warns ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan. Though also alarmed by the increasing rate of throat cancer caused by infection with HPV, ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross was more perturbed to learn that drug makers are resistant to study the use of HPV vaccines — now used to prevent cervical cancer in women and anal warts in males — for the prevention of oral cancer. “I was disconcerted to read that the two manufacturers of the HPV vaccine, Merck and GlaxoSmithKline, are not interested in pursuing this topic of prevention,” laments Dr. Ross. “Since there is no easy way to detect pre-cancers in the oral cavity, a clinical trial could take 10 to 20 years to complete. However, it is obvious that eliminating the virus through the use of vaccination would stop our current epidemic.”

Charlotte Parker2010-07-25T20:14:29-07:00July, 2010|Oral Cancer News|